I Still Miss You
by samanthabravo
Summary: A chance encounter makes Steffy question everything she thought she wanted. A Steffy/Marcus story.


**I Still Miss You**

_**I started writing this last year in December so it takes place before all of the (frankly) shit with the baby switch which has completely ruined the show for me. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. By the way, I kind of recasted Marcus. He's now "played by" Lamon Archey who portrays Eli on Days of Our Lives (because he's hot! lol). Here we go...**_

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**Part 1**

"Capital morning, tisn't, Steffy?" Zoe said, fairly skipping into the office. Her exotically pretty face was lit up in a bright smile. She twirled around twice. The skirt of her bright red halter dress flared out enticingly.

Steffy set down the file folder in her hand. "Someone's got some serious bounce in their step today," she said with a smile.

Zoe nodded eagerly. She pressed her tiny hands to the desk in front of her. "Xander and I … Well, let's just say we 'reconnected' last night."

"Ah, I see. That good, huh?"

"Bloody fabulous," Zoe answered. She hugged herself. "I'm so happy!"

"And I'm happy for you," Steffy said sincerely.

"Everyone should feel like this, Steffy. Everyone. Present company included," she added. "You need love in your life."

Steffy shook her head. "Maybe someday, but for now, I'm okay going it alone. I'm focusing on my daughter and my career."

"Still, having someone to cuddle up to at night … Don't you miss that?"

Steffy nodded. "Sometimes, yes, I guess I do."

"We need to find you somebody!" Zoe's eyes danced. "There are a lot of hot, single men in Los Angeles!"

"That's the thing. I don't want just anybody. If I date again, allow myself to fall in love, it has to be with someone really special. Someone I can't imagine living without. I already had that kind of love once in my life, though, and I can't imagine anyone else ever comparing."

Xoxxo

A bustling, busy day finally drew to a close at nearly 9 P.M. Steffy felt incredibly guilty knowing she had missed putting her baby to sleep that night. _Thank god for Mom,_ she thought as she grabbed for her clutch purse and headed towards the exit. _At least Kelly has someone to tuck her in, someone who loves her as much as Liam and I do._

_**Liam.**_ He'd been on her mind more often than he should be lately. She didn't see him nearly as often now that Hope was on maternity leave, and she missed him. He no longer stopped by the office to see Hope and he visited with Kelly most days while she was at work. They were two ships in the night, she mused. No, that made them sound like star-crossed lovers. They had been lovers, and they certainly had been star-crossed, but she wasn't supposed to long for him the way she did in her quiet, secret heart. She needed to move on, she really did.

"Stef, hey," Wyatt greeted her as they met in the hallway. "I got some killer shots for the blog."

"That's great," Steffy said. "I can't wait to see them. You're doing a wonderful job."

"Thanks. I love working here again. It feels like home to me."

Steffy smiled as Sally approached and linked arms with Wyatt. "And there are some extra perks here for you, I think."

Wyatt grinned at Sally. "You could say that."

"Whatcha two talking about?" Sally asked.

"The benefit package here at Forrester," Wyatt said, winking at his girlfriend.

Sally chuckled. "Alrighty then... Hey, did you ask Steffy yet?"

"Ask me what?" Steffy lifted an eyebrow questioningly. "This sounds a little ominous," she half-joked.

"Oh don't worry, it's nothing bad," Sally tried to reassure her. "In fact, it's something good. Great, even."

"Okay, I'll bite. What are you talking about?"

Wyatt shook his head. "Just remember, this was Sally's idea, not mine."

"Zoe and I both came up with the idea together, and it's going to be great," Sally argued, lightly slapping his arm. "Steffy, we're all going out club hopping tonight - Zoe, Xander, Wyatt, and I - and we want you to come along. And before you protest, let me just say, it'll be fun. Really fun. You need a break. We all do. We've been working so hard on the new line. We need to cut loose, do some dancing, and drinking… What do you say?"

"I say, as nice as that sounds, I have to turn you down."

"Ahhh. Why?"

"Well, for one, I have a baby at home-"

"Who is probably already asleep, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"Steffy, come on. Just live a little," Sally pressed. "I promise you won't regret tagging along with us."

"That's the second thing. The whole tagging along part. I'm going to be the fifth wheel. And that's not fun for you guys."

"No, you're not going to be the fifth wheel. Not at all. Tell her she's not, Wyatt."

"She's right," Wyatt nodded. "You're never the fifth wheel with true friends. We really will have a great time."

"So … come?" Sally said.

Steffy splayed her hands. "I don't know. The party scene is great and all, but I'm a mom now-"

"A mom, sure, but you're not dead. You're still young, hot, and vibrant. You deserve a social life too. So come on!" Sally said.

Steffy sighed. "Alright, but if I come, I am having one drink and that's it. I don't want to stumble home to my daughter in a stupor. I'll just be the designated driver."

"Fair enough," Sally said. "Thanks."

Steffy nodded. "Sure. Let me just call my mom and make sure she's okay with babysitting for the rest of the night."

"Okay," Wyatt said. "We'll meet you outside."

"Alright," Steffy agreed. She told herself it was okay to have some fun. She reasoned that even new mamas deserved to cut loose every once in awhile.

Xoxox

They had hit at least five clubs and three bars so far. Steffy had consumed one single cosmo and danced her heart out. Her friends were right - she did need to have some fun. She'd felt admiring glances from several men, a few had even approached her, but she'd always said she was flattered but that she was off the market for now.

Zoe and Xander were squished together in the backseat and Sally sat on Wyatt's lap in the passenger seat. They were all jamming out to some P!nk on the stereo system as Steffy piloted her Camaro through town. Suddenly, Zoe pulled her lips from Xander's neck and started shifting around uncomfortably on the seat.

"Something wrong?" Steffy asked, looking at the other woman in the rearview mirror.

"Yes. The gin is going right through me. I need to visit a ladies' room right now!"

Sally twisted on Wyatt's lap to look at her friend. "We're halfway to Club 101. Do you think you can hold it til then?"

"Not if I don't want a UTI, I can't," Zoe said. She did a great version of the potty dance. "Just pull over here."

"You're not going by the side of the road," Steffy said.

"Of course not." Zoe looked appropriately offended. "There's a little pub coming up on the right."

"Sure enough," Wyatt said.

Steffy looked at it. "It looks seedy as hell."

"I know," Xander said. "Sure you want to stop here, Zoe?"

"Quite sure. Steffy doesn't want a puddle on her seat, now does she?"

"You're right, I don't." Steffy pulled up to the curb and threw the car into park.

"I'll be right back," Zoe said, climbing over Xander as she clawed desperately for the door handle.

"Oh no," Xander said. "You can't go into that place all by yourself. You might not come back at all. I'm coming with you."

"Ahh, protecting Zoe, how sweet," Sally said.

Wyatt grinned at his girlfriend. "You sap."

Sally wrapped her arm around Wyatt's shoulders. "What can I say? You bring out the sappy side of me."

"I choose to take that as a compliment."

Steffy watched Xander trot after Zoe. They disappeared inside the bar. Steffy glanced at Wyatt and Sally beside her. They were kissing. Not exactly sucking face, but very close to it. There was definitely some tongue action. She sighed. She didn't want to feel like a voyeur here.

She kicked open her door. "I need a bathroom break too," she said.

"We'll come with you," Wyatt offered, tearing his lips from Sally's puffy ones.

"No, you two lovebirds stay right here. I'll be with Zoe and Xander so I'll be fine. Back in five." Then she rushed off before they could stop her.

The bar was appropriately called "The Pit". She understood why as soon as she walked inside. It was dirty, dingy, and the air was thick with the smell of stale cigarette smoke. She almost choked on it.

She noticed a bunch of biker types leer at her from their place by the jukebox. A 70's song played on it, something by Rod Stewart. She looked around for the sign for the bathroom. She finally spotted it and holding her head high, and her back straight, she started towards it.

She was almost there when a big, burly man suddenly blocked her path. He grinned at her with a set of broken, yellowed teeth. "Excuse me," Steffy said, trying to duck around him. He jumped in front of her with surprising speed.

"Where ya going, pretty girl?" The big guy asked.

"To the bathroom. Now excuse me," she said again, less patiently.

"I'll come with you." He reached for her arm before she could stop him. He tugged her close to his chest. "Those stalls are just big enough for two."

Steffy stiffened. "Not likely. Now get your damn hands off of me!" This was playing out like the requisite bar scene in ever crappy, low-budget movie she'd ever seen. It was awful.

He laughed. "Come on, babe, don't be such a frigid bitch."

"You know what? Fuck off," she said and yanked her arm from his grasp forcefully. He reached for her again, but she skirted around him. She spotted Zoe and Xander halfway across the room and moved towards them.

The big brute followed after her. He was breathing down her neck. She felt panicked, but tried to swallow it down. "Get the fuck away from me," she spat. She was proud that her voice didn't shake or betray her anxiety.

"Nobody tells Larry to fuck off!" The guy returned.

"I just did," Steffy snapped over her shoulder. She quickened her pace and made it over to Xander and Zoe. "Come on, you guys. Let's get out of here. _Now."_

Xander and Zoe nodded their agreement and they started to turn to go. The big buffoon blocked their path and he wasn't alone anymore. He was now flanked by two friends who were gritting their teeth at Steffy and her friends.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion then. It really was like a scene in a grade B movie. Steffy tried to push past the men with Xander and Zoe's help. The men knocked Xander to the floor on his ass and sniggered loudly. Larry grabbed Steffy tightly around the waist. She struggled and elbowed him in the doughy belly as hard as she could. He yelped and let her go. She sprinted for the door but realized Zoe was stuck by the men now.

She picked up the nearest beer bottle and waved it menacingly. "You three get the fuck away from my friends or I swear to God, I won't be responsible for what I do."

The men laughed and started advancing on her. Steffy wasn't a violent woman. Never had been, but she thought striking back might be the only recourse now. She was about to hurtle the bottle at the lot of them when suddenly there was a flurry of grunts. A man had slipped up behind the three men and knocked two over the head with twin glasses while kicking the other's legs out from underneath him. Steffy didn't stop to look at him. She just ran to Xander and Zoe and grabbed their hands. She pulled them towards the exit.

She pushed them through the door and then thought to look back at her Good Samaritan. She couldn't believe who she saw. He was more muscular than she remembered, sported a grizzled goatee, and his dark eyes flashed, but it was definitely him.

"Marcus," she said. "Ohmigod."

Xoxoxo

Marcus gave her a penetrating look. The three men were struggling to their feet, coming up right behind him. Steffy waved her hand at him. "Come on, come on!" She said frantically.

He seemed to turn over the idea of coming with her for a good moment. Then he looked back at the men, gave them dirty looks, and followed after Steffy.

Wyatt and Sally had stopped making out and were standing on the sidewalk with Xander and Zoe. They both looked incredibly shaken up. "Get in the car!" Steffy yelled. "Come on, come on."

Wyatt and Sally started for the passenger seat but Steffy shook her head vehemently. "Backseat," she said, pointing to Marcus. "Let's go, guys."

Wyatt looked at Marcus questioningly, but didn't speak. He and Sally squeezed into the backseat with Xander and Zoe. Steffy hopped into the driver's seat and waved to Marcus. Again, he hesitated but as the door burst open and their assailants tumbled out screaming obscenities, he finally moved. He jumped into the car and Steffy gunned the engine. They zoomed out into traffic.

No one dared speak for a few long, strained minutes. Steffy and Marcus looked at each other curiously as she drove. Finally, Sally asked, "What the hell happened back there?"

"We got properly attacked, that's what happened," Zoe bit out.

Steffy looked at her in the rearview mirror. She trembled visibly. She may have been a strong woman, but anyone would be shaken up by what had gone down. Hell, Steffy was too. She gripped the wheel tightly to steady her hands.

"These three big freaks of nature knocked me on my ass and attacked Zoe," Xander said. "They grabbed Steffy. It was a huge scene."

"Ohmigod," Wyatt said. "Are you guys okay?"

Steffy looked at her friends. "We will be."

"Can we go home?" Zoe looked at Xander desperately. "Back to your place. Please."

Xander tucked his arm around her trembling shoulders. "Of course, luv." He looked at Steffy hopefully. "Think you could you drop us off?"

"Of course," Steffy said, flipping the signal for a U-turn. She made sure the assholes from "The Pit" hadn't followed and zoomed back across town.

"I'm so sorry, guys," Sally said. "Should we call the police and report whoever hurt you?"

"I think you should," Wyatt added.

"No," Zoe shook her head. "I just want to go home and sleep this off." She hugged her body to Xander's.

"I can live with that," Xander agreed.

Steffy nodded. "Okay, yes, let's just forget this happened." She knew somehow it would be easier said than done.

She looked over at Marcus. He was now staring out the window, seeming not to hear them. Sally watched him too, seeming to want to ask who he was.

Steffy sighed. "Guys," she said, "this is my old… friend, Marcus. He saved our asses in there. We owe him big time."

Xoxox

Steffy dropped off Xander and Zoe, followed by Wyatt and Sally. Wyatt and Sally tried to talk her into calling the police, but she said she'd just as soon forget it. They both gave her hugs, told her to call if she needed anything, anything at all, and headed inside their place.

Steffy climbed back into the Camaro. She looked at Marcus. "Where to?" She asked.

Marcus didn't answer for a long, charged moment. And then he looked at her, "I don't know. You want … To go somewhere and talk?"

"I didn't think you were in the talking mood," Steffy pointed out. He'd been dead silent up to this point. "But sure. There's an all-night coffee shop around the corner… You game?"

"Yes." He looked at her as she started the engine again. "You okay?"

"Yes, thanks to you… You saved us."

"Helped you. You handled those guys pretty well yourself. That's the fighter I remember."

"I remember something about you too. I remember you were a lover, not a fighter, so where did that Jackie Chan stuff come from?"

He shrugged. "I saw you and your friends in trouble… And I couldn't ignore that."

"Still, you were pretty impressive." She gave him a weak smile. "Thank you."

He just nodded.

Xoxox

They walked into the coffee shop. It was all but deserted save for one tired-looking barista at the counter. Steffy ordered a regular coffee, not interested in anything foofy or extravagant tonight; certainly not feeling the way she felt. Which was discombobulated, vulnerable, and confused. Three feelings she seriously hated.

Marcus ordered a black coffee and pulled out his wallet to pay. "I got this," Steffy held up her hand. "Please. It's the least I can do after what you did."

"I wasn't trying to be a hero, Steffy."

"Well, you were," she said. She slapped down the money. "So deal with it."

They holed up in a corner booth. Marcus sat across from her. For the longest time, he just stared into his cup, saying nothing. "You should drink some," Steffy said. "Before it gets cold."

He took a sip obligingly. He'd never been very good about resisting her. That hadn't changed even if everything else about him seemed to have.

She looked at him over her mug. "What's with the goatee?"

He sniffed. "It's a beard."

"It's a goatee," she said. She smiled a little. "It's hiding that pretty baby face of yours."

If she hoped to get a smile out of him, she would have been disappointed. He scowled. "Pretty, huh?"

"Yep. That's how I remember you. Clean shaven and pretty as hell."

He sighed, tapping his fingers on the table. "Things change."

"You're telling me," she said. "By the way, I love the leather jacket you're sporting. It fits your new tough guy image, even if it will take some getting used to… How long have you been back in L.A.?"

He shrugged. "About a week."

"About a week and this is the first I'm seeing of you?" She rolled her eyes. "You disappoint me."

"Would you have wanted to see me?"

"Hell yes, I would have. You were always a great friend to me."

He rolled his eyes heavenward. "Friend," he muttered.

Steffy gazed at him. "I bet your Mom and Dad are excited you're back."

"They don't know."

"What?" She asked, shocked. "Why not?"

He took a long sip of his beverage. "I just… I didn't know how to approach them right now."

"What do you mean? They're your parents. You don't need to plan out how you meet up with them. You just … meet up with them. They love you."

"Is that why they gave me up for adoption?"

Steffy blinked. "Justin didn't even know about you, and Donna… She's not my favorite person in the world maybe, but I know she didn't do that to hurt you. You used to know that too."

"People hurt people, whether they want to or not. It's the way of life."

"Ohmigod, who are you and where's my friend Marcus, the optimist?"

"Friend," he muttered again. "And things change… I'm not some starry-eyed idiot anymore."

"You were never an idiot. But what happened?" Steffy asked gently. "Why do you seem so unhappy; so cynical?"

He splayed his hands on his kneecaps. "Doesn't matter."

"It matters to me."

He looked up at her, held her eyes for a long moment. "Steffy, leave it alone."

"I can't do that," Steffy said. "Whether you want to admit it or not, something's eating away at you, and I want to know what it is. You said we could talk."

"You want to know?" He said. His eyes blazed. "Fine, I'll tell you every sordid detail."

She was taken aback by the anger in his voice but she didn't shy away. "Tell me. Did something happen with Dayzee?"

"Yes, something happened with Dayzee," he said in a low hiss. "I found out she wasn't the person I thought she was."

Steffy waited expectantly as he seemed to be gathering his courage to speak. He finally said, "She took custody of Rosie away from me. Her and Amber worked together to rob me of my rights to my kid."

"What - why the hell-"

"Because I was drinking," Marcus said. "According to them, I became a menace."

So that explained why he was in "The Pit" tonight, she thought. He was knocking them back. But it didn't explain why they anyone would take away his daughter from him. Marcus would never endanger his child. He loved the little girl too damn much.

"I don't understand. How come I didn't hear about any of this before?"

"No one else knows. No one but Dayzee and Amber. And of course, the guy Dayzee was stepping out with."

Steffy's mouth dropped open. "Dayzee … She cheated on you?"

"Yes." He shook his head. "I am kind of surprised you didn't hear about that part."

"Why should I have heard? It's not like you called me or anything."

"I thought Thomas would have been shouting the news from the rooftops."

"Thomas? As in my brother Thomas?"

"One and the same," Marcus gritted his teeth.

"Why would Thomas know anything about Dayzee's business… Unless… Ohmigod! He and Dayzee…?"

"Yep. Thomas and Dayzee. Your brother and my soon-to-be-ex-wife had an affair."

TO BE CONTINUED.


End file.
